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Ten Hills on the Somerville Waterfront

Yes, Somerville has a waterfront. There’s a neighborhood out by the Assembly Square Mall called “Ten Hills.” This is the part of Somerville that got cut off from the rest of it in the 1950′s when I93 went in and bisected the city. The neighborhood slopes down to the Mystic River where Sean Penn NEVER killed ANYONE. The neighborhood is also across the street from the under developed land known as “Assembly Square.” Right now, it’s only a bunch of big box stores, but thanks to a tenacious group of Somerville residents who fought tooth and nail for nearly ten years and it will not be a big strip mall on the river, it will become a real river front neighborhood. With a strip mall-esque component.

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On the left side of this photo, you can see the new proposed development. It will be mixed use housing and office space. The plans include an Orange line stop and an Ikea. On the bottom left hand side of the photo, in black and white… That’s part of Ten Hills. While this neighborhood is currently a bit cut off from the rest of Somerville, many future amenities are planed right across the street. You can see the detailed plans here.

There’s not usually a lot for sale in Ten Hills. When I originally moved to Somerville, I really liked it, but my choices were rather limited and the right property didn’t come along.

Here’s a few places that look like they’re reasonably priced. You get a lot of bang for your buck in this neighborhood. And like so much of Somerville, it’s a neighborhood on the brink of a major positive transition. The T is moving in, the river is slated for a major clean up and it’s really, really pretty over there. Just don’t look too far to the right at the highway.

Here’s what’s for sale in Ten Hills

First, we have 74 A Putnam Road, a two bedroom 1 bath totally renovated condo which is on the market for $339k. According to the listing it has river views, which is pretty cool, especially considering you’re about two miles from downtown Boston. But at$342 per square foot, it seems a little steep for the current market.

Next, we have 129 A Govenor Winthrop Road, a 3 bedroom 2.5 bath townhouse which is on the market for 359k. At $262 per square foot this seems like a better deal than the first one. According to the photo in the listing, this unit has 4 season river views. It’s really quite lovely.

The most “bang for the buck” goes to 82-2 Fellsway West. It’s a 3 bedroom 2 bath condo listed at 349,800 and it’s large enough to be only $169 per square foot, which is a good deal for anywhere in Somerville. There’s only a few other properties on the market for less, they don’t seem as fixed up.

This area may not be as trendy as Davis Square, but if you’re looking for a nice place to live with a lot of future potential, this riverside neighborhood could be a good fit for you.

Great picture of a little-know neighborhood that doesn’t quite exist yet. It looks like it will be quite a livable neighborhood. I wonder if home prices have started to change in anticipation of the new development.

I think it’s a believe it when I see it kind of thing as far as RE prices go.

But Ten Hills is SO pretty, and since it’s on the other side of 93, not a lot of people know about it. If it weren’t such a nightmarish process, I’d say Bury ALL of urban I93 like the Big dig and give the cities access to our rivers again!

Hoss

You should update the image of the Assembly Square redevelopment area to the image depicted here:

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